Games
by Marz
Summary: Implied SetoJou Video games aren't the only games that Seto finds himself playing when he takes Mokuba to the arcade.


A/N: Hi again! Before you start yelling obscenities at me, I am still working on Dreams, Dread, and Puppies. I just don't know where to go from where I left off. When I started writing, I knew where I wanted to go up to a certain point. Now that I've reached it...yeah. Anyway, as soon as I am able to pick a direction, I will post it. I love writing this as much as you (hopefully) love reading it, so this is a bummer to me, too.

This thing wouldn't leave me alone, so I figured I'd post this instead. At least it's something, right? Also, I have an idea for yet _another_ story that I'm not sure whether or not I want to do. So, let me know if you think I should just go for it or not.

Anyway, here it is. If you think I should turn it into more than a one-shot, let me know and I'll consider it. You remember when I said that when I plan stories they almost never follow what I have? Well, this is one of them. It was meant to be much longer and go in a different direction, but I actually think that this turned out much better. Okay, for real this time, here it is. Enjoy!

Warnings: Umm...this one's pretty safe, I think. Implied shounen-ai, meaning boy/boy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh. Someone much more rich and imaginative than me does.

Ratings: Probably PG...maybe PG-13.

Pairing: Officially there are none, but Seto/Jou is implied.

**Games**

"_Setooooooooo!"_

Jumping slightly at the sudden sound of his name being shouted throughout the house, Seto Kaiba tore his eyes away from the computer screen and shot an irritated look toward the door. Mokuba wanted something. He knew it. He also knew that unless he went to see what his little brother wanted from him he wouldn't be getting any more work done. With a sigh he pushed his chair back and made his way to where he believed the voice came from.

Arriving in front of the game room, he paused only to push open the door. He stepped inside to immediately be jumped on by a certain black-haired whirlwind.

"Hi, big brother!" Mokuba said cheerfully, looking up at him with a big smile.

"What do you want, Mokuba?"

Mokuba put on the most innocent face he could muster. "Whatever do you mean, best brother in the whole wide world? I just wanted to spend some time with my favorite person, that's all."

Seto rolled his eyes, placing a hand on top of the younger one's head. "What do you want, Mokuba?" he asked in a more gentle tone.

Said child smiled. "To go to the arcade."

"You own almost every game that's over there," the CEO pointed out.

"I know, but sometimes it's more fun to play with other people." Mokuba's eyes widened as he realized what he had said. "I know that you play with me whenever you can and I love that, I really do!" Mokuba let go of Seto's waist and looked at the ground, suddenly rethinking his request. "I don't want to hurt your feelings, Seto. I don't have to go." He stared hard at his socked feet, willing the tears that were forming in his eyes to go away. _Way to go, Mokuba,_ he scolded himself. _You know how sensitive he is when it comes to him not spending as much time with you as he thinks he should. Now you've gone and hurt him. What a good little brother you are._

Seto looked down at his little brother with softened eyes, knowing that this was not part of his act to get what he wanted. He thought he had hurt his older brother, and if he knew the kid well enough, he was near tears. Kneeling down so he was at Mokuba's level, he placed one hand on his shoulder while using the other to lift his chin.

"Do you want to go?" he asked softly. Mokuba didn't answer verbally, but the want was clear in his eyes. "Then let's go."

Mokuba sniffed. "Really?"

Seto nodded and offered him a rare smile. To further show that he was all right, he pulled his little brother into a firm embrace. "You do know that I do my best, don't you, Mokuba?" he asked after a moment's hesitation.

Mokuba nodded against his neck, where his head was buried. "You really are the best big brother, Seto."

"And I couldn't ask for a better little brother. Now go get dressed so we can leave," Seto said, pulling away. "You've been wearing your pajamas all day."

Mokuba stepped back and stuck out his tongue. "It's a Saturday; I don't have to get dressed."

Seto rolled his eyes. "I know, I know. Let's go, ya bum."

XxXxXxX

Mokuba all but bounced out of the limo and turned to Seto as he stepped out in a much more dignified manner. "Are you gonna stay, big brother?" he asked hopefully.

Seto glanced down at him as they made their way into the arcade, and then began to take in their surroundings. "And leave my little brother alone in the company of all these…" He trailed off as something the color of gold caught his attention from the corner of his vision.

Mokuba followed his gaze and grinned. "See something' ya like?" he asked cheekily.

Seto snapped his eyes back to Mokuba. "What?"

"I see you found your puppy," the mischievous black-haired child said casually.

Seto narrowed his eyes and threw him a glare. "Excuse me?"

Mokuba continued like he wasn't on the receiving end of a glare that promised certain death. Or certain grounding. "He works here, ya know. If you want you can take me here more often so you can see him."

The brunette forced himself not to pale or turn red. "What are you implying?"

"Oh, come on, Seto! I know you like him," he said in a stage whisper, being careful not to be overheard.

As much as he prided himself on his self-control, he couldn't keep his eyes from widening, however small the fraction. "Me? Like the mutt? Are you crazy!"

"No, I'm observant. He's the only person that you say more than three words to in a row, big brother! You go out of your way to see him, only if it is to fight. Personally, I think you like seeing him all riled up."

"That's absurd."

Mokuba raised an eyebrow, unconsciously mimicking his brother. "Is it? Seto, you know you can't lie to me."

Seto sighed. "I…I don't know, Mokuba, all right? I just know that besides you, he's the only person who's not afraid to treat me normally, tells me what he thinks of me to my face. He's one of the only people who doesn't try to suck up to me and try to take advantage of me. He doesn't care that I own a company and have lots of money." All through Seto's speech his eyes never once left the golden-haired figure across the room from him.

Mokuba's eyes lit up at his brother's confession. "You _do_ like him!"

That was enough to snap him out of his trance. "I told you, I don't know. Now go play." He reached into his wallet and handed Mokuba a handful of ones and fives.

"Thanks, big brother! Are you gonna play, too?"

"Don't push it."

Mokuba just grinned. "Okay, but at least try to have a little bit of fun? Go talk to Jou; I'm sure he'd be happy to see you!" With that the kid bounced off.

Seto blinked. _Happy to…see me? Yeah right, Mokuba. Since when would he be happy to see a bastard like me? All I do is piss him off. Although…it _is_ fun…_

XxXxXxX

Jou nearly tripped when he saw who walked into the arcade. _Kaiba!_ He stared for a bit, wondering if he was seeing things. Then he noticed the black-haired child that was with him. _That explains that…that kid's a sucker for video games. Not unlike myself…_ Shaking himself out of his thoughts, he went back to explaining the rules of one of the newer games to a customer.

During his rather lengthy explanation of the game, Jou could've sworn he felt eyes burning holes into his back. Although, this time the burning sensation was one he could get used to; it wasn't hostile, just speculative. Instinctively he knew who was watching him and smirked. _Kaiba's staring at me and he's not trying to shoot lasers out of his eyes through my chest. Never thought I'd see the day._ Wrapping up his speech, he risked a glance at his rival out of the corner of his eye. _He's definitely talking to Mokuba, but…he looks as if he's somewhere else. Does he even know he's looking at me?_ Jou mentally shook himself, wished the kid luck, and moved on. He had a job to do. Granted, he didn't know what to move on to, seeing as everyone else sharing his shift had everything under control. _Oh well. Onto better and…bigger things. _ Jou snickered to himself. _Not time for…those thoughts, you hentai._

The blonde immediately spotted his target and started for him. His target wasn't that hard to find, being tall, intimidating, and incredibly handsome. He tried to make his approach as casual as possible, but knew he was most likely failing miserably. Oh well.

"Will wonders never cease? Seto Kaiba is willingly stepping foot in a place known to be inhabited by annoying commoners."

"Wonders, indeed. Someone was actually stupid enough to hire you. What, did you win them over with a doggie trick?"

Much to the brunette's surprise, Jou chuckled. "Somethin' like that."

Seto waited for him to continue, raising an eyebrow when the pup made no show of continuing. He was far too curious to let this slide. "Oh, this I've got to hear."

Jou looked at him with a smirk, making the CEO's heart skip a beat. He opened his mouth to reply but was cut off by someone shouting his name.

"Jou! Jou get over here now! We've got a situation!"

Jou sighed and looked at the girl behind the cash register who was calling him. "Be right there!" he called back, then turned to Kaiba. "Sorry, Kaiba, duty calls. Play a game or somethin' while you're waitin'. Relax for a change. Might do ya some good." Jou smiled before turning and walking away.

Seto just stood there, eyes trailing after him. _He…smiled at me. And we didn't fight. Was that a civil conversation we just had!_ The duelist smiled a bit and shook his head. _Wonders, indeed._

XxXxXxX

Jou sighed for the third time in under two minutes, running his hand through his unruly blonde hair. "Listen, ma'am, it's not our fault that your child has yet to win the video game. No other person has had a complaint about this, and I'm quite sure no one else will in the future. Now, I admit, the game he was playing is a bit challenging. He probably just needs a little more practice." The teen winced as the irate mother went on to rant about how her son had been trying to beat the game all year and she was sure the game was rigged. "Ma'am, none of the games are rigged, I assure you!" he said in exasperation. Giving a mental groan as she continued her tirade, he looked around the arcade hoping to spot some excuse for him to leave. Much to his disappointment the distraction he was looking for was playing a shooting game with his little brother. Heaving another sigh, he turned back to the woman, hoping to ease her ire.

XxXxXxX

"Aww, you beat me again!" Mokuba whined, placing his gun back in the appropriate holster.

Seto smirked and mirrored his actions. "Well, what else did you expect? Did you want me to let you win?"

Mokuba scrunched up his nose. "No!"

"Good, because I wouldn't have."

The child just rolled his eyes, in doing so catching the commotion over by the front counter. He winced in sympathy after observing for a few moments. "Poor Jou…"

That caught Seto's attention. "What?"

"Look over there." Mokuba motioned with his chin. "That woman's giving Jou a really hard time. He looks like he's about to punch her just to shut her up or cry."

The last comment struck Seto's heart. His puppy in tears? That's just not right! Seto shook his head at his thoughts. _What are you doing to me, mutt!_ he demanded.

"How long have we been playing?"

Seto frowned, not seeing how the question was relevant, but checked his watch anyway. "About fifteen minutes, why?"

"'Cuz I think that's how long he's been listening to the woman rant. She looks like she's still going strong from over here…Someone should really go help…him…Seto?" Mokuba looked beside him but his brother was nowhere to be seen. He just smiled and turned back to the game.

XxXxXxX

Jou had always considered himself a good people-person. At least where certain brunettes weren't concerned. Most people he could talk to in a civilized manner and not want to cause any physical harm, be it to the person or himself. Jou also prided himself on his morals. One of them was to never hit a woman. So, ruling out the option of physical violence to the other person, Jou was a breath away from ripping his own hair out of his scalp in frustration. This woman would not listen to a word he said! There was no reasoning with her! As far as she was concerned her son was God's gift to the world and could do anything, including beating a certain video game that took Jou, himself, three months to beat. And coming from a boy who would come to the arcade sometimes six or seven times a week, that was saying something.

The blonde opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by the sound of flesh on flesh, followed by a sharp stinging in his left cheek . He slowly raised his hand to his injured face and brought up his gaze to where he saw the opposite hand flying in for another round. He closed his eyes, waiting for the accompanying sting. However, when the connection never happened, he opened his eyes to see the offending appendage caught in the grip of another. Brown eyes widened as they took in the person before him.

XxXxXxX

As soon as Mokuba had pointed out the situation the blonde was in, he had moved to intervene. He only planned on setting her straight, wiping the pained look from Jou's face, and going back to Mokuba. He did not plan for the surge of anger that swept over him as he heard a resounding "slap" echo toward him. He did not plan on the overwhelming feeling of protectiveness that possessed him at the hurt look in Jou's eyes. He did not plan on stepping forward just in time to catch the other hand from doing more damage to his puppy.

The brunette narrowed his eyes dangerously so they were just angry slits and threw a full-blown Kaiba glare at the woman who had dared to harm Katsuya. "I wouldn't do that again, if I were you," he growled lowly. "I've heard enough of your pointless conversation—note that I'm being polite by calling it that—and come to the conclusion that you don't need to be here anymore. Has it ever occurred to you that your son may not be as good as he claims to be? Maybe he is not capable of beating the game at his current level of skill…or lack thereof. I think that you both should leave. Now." His tone made it clear that it was not a suggestion.

All the woman could do was stare through his speech, knowing full well who held her hand, and not in a friendly manner. If anything he looked like he was restraining himself from crushing the bones in her hand. Meekly, she nodded, waited until her hand was released from the vice-like grip, threw one last scathing look at Jou, took her son's hand and walked out of the arcade.

Seto's attention was brought back to the boy beside him when said boy let out a loud sigh.

"Oh, man! Thanks, Kaiba, I owe ya one. You really saved my butt! Well, more like my sanity, really. Jeez…and I thought the two of us were stubborn." Jou let out a small chuckle and started to run his hands over his face in a tired fashion.

Seto raised an eyebrow at his last comment, but that turned to a look of concern when he heard Jou hiss.

"Damn, that woman can slap! I thought woman were supposed to be sissies or somethin'." Jou winced.

Kaiba's eyes narrowed as he took Jou's chin gently in his hand, turning his face so his injured cheek faced him. He frowned as he took in a bloody streak. "Looks like she was wearing some sort of ring. She must have turned it so the jewel was facing her palm before she hit you. Left a nice cut." When he was done inspecting the wound, he took out a handkerchief from his pocket and gently pressed it to Jou's injured cheek.

Jou felt a blush rising to his face at the contact. "Thanks," he whispered, looking at Kaiba who was, in turn, staring at the cloth.

"Don't mention it," Kaiba mumbled in return, not knowing what to do next and hating himself for it.

Jou sensed the uneasiness about the CEO and knew he had to something before he lost his chance. "Say, Kaiba…?"

"Yeah?"

"You gonna be here for a while?"

"Maybe. What's it to you?" he retorted, still looking hard at the cloth in his hand.

Jou grinned. He knew Seto was out of his element and was loving every minute of being in control. He decided to take advantage of it while he could. Seto would get his wits back eventually and he would lose his chance. "My shift ends at six. Wanna play some games when I get off?"

Both stayed silent while Seto thought over the offer, Jou knowing better than to interrupt him. He'd have to be around these loud and obnoxious people for longer than he had planned, but on the other hand, Jou was giving him a chance to beat him at something else. He would take the blonde up on his offer, but only to show him up in one other area. Not because it would give him an excuse to spend time with him. Besides, what better thing did he have to do at home, anyway?

After what seemed to be an eternity of silence, Seto finally removed the handkerchief from Jou's face, which was now free of blood, and gave him a nod. "I suppose I could hang around for a little while longer. Only if it is to shove it into your face that I'm better than you."

Seto was only mildly surprised when Jou let the snide comment pass with a smile. "Great! It's a date," he said with a wink.

Seto just rolled his eyes and walked away, making his way back to where his little brother had moved off to. He briefly wondered if Jou had noticed that he had smiled back.

XxXxXxX

Watching the tall brunette walk away, Jou's smile grew. Yes, he had immediately noticed the slight curve of his rival's lips, and it made him look more beautiful than he ever had.

A/N: Well, there it is. Tell me what you think. Should I continue? Should I leave it a one-shot? It's all up to you guys, so let me know in a review. Thanks a bunch! Ja!  



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